Halloween Road Trip: Music festivals worth the drive

By Cory PenningtonTusk Writer

Friday

Oct 29, 2010 at 12:01 AM

Been looking for a reason to get out of town? Tusk Local Music producer Cory Pennington is going to take you to one of them in Asheville, N.C. More info inside as well as other acts that might inspire you to hop in the station wagon Griswold-style.

Been looking for a reason to get out of town? Halloween is the perfect chance. The leaves are changing, it's a bye week for the football team and the weekend is packed with music festivals within driving distance. From zydeco to punk rock to electronic music, there is something for everyone. Pack up the station wagon Griswold-style and hit the road. All three of these begin today and run through Sunday.

Asheville, N.C.www.moogfest.comIs your musical taste experimental? Moogfest is one of the most renowned electronic music festivals in the country. This festival honors Robert Moog, pioneer of electronic music and inventor of the Moog synthesizer. For 2010, MoogFest moves from New York City to Asheville, N.C. — the place Bob Moog called home for the last 30 years of his life — and expands to a three-day, multivenue event.Musical acts from across the spectrum that embody the essence of Moog's visionary and creative spirit will perform. Acts include Devo, MGMT, Massive Attack, Big Boi, Pretty Lights, Girl Talk, Thievery Corporation, Disco Biscuits, Mutemath, Sleigh Bells, Hot Chip and others.There will also be interactive experiences with Moog instruments, panel discussions with artists, workshops, visual art exhibits and film screenings throughout the weekend. The three primary venues are on the north side of downtown Asheville. The Asheville Civic Center houses both the 6,000-capacity arena and the 2,400-seat Thomas Wolfe Auditorium. Shows will also be at The Orange Peel, a 1,000-capacity venue named by Rolling Stone magazine as one of the best rock clubs in the country. Smaller events will take place at Club 828, The Fine Arts Theatre and Moogaplex.TuskLocalMusic.com will be covering Moogfest. Visit the site for live updates all weekend.

New Orleanswww.thevoodooexperience.com/2010expThe 11th annual Voodoo Music Experience is packed with enough bands to overwhelm even the most dedicated fan. The festival was created to celebrate the culture and history of New Orleans. More specifically it was inspired by Congo Square, the first place Haitians were allowed to practice their religious beliefs, which they did through music and dance. Voodoo Festival was named Best Festival from New Orleans' Offbeat Magazine. Voodoo is the youngest of the major music festivals in New Orleans such as Jazz Fest, Satchmo Summerfest and Essence Music Festival.The Voodoo Fest lineup includes Ozzy Osbourne, Muse, My Morning Jacket, Weezer, MGMT, Deadmau5, Jakob Dylan, Cage the Elephant, Galactic, Interpol, Paul Van Dyk, Drake and a ton of other acts.Voodoo also integrates the region's culture and sounds, this year booking such local favorites as Trombone Shorty, Rebirth Brass Band, Beausoleil and Irvin Mayfield.

Gainesville, Fla.www.thefestfl.comThe Fest 9 is a punk rock festival put on each year by No Idea records in Gainesville, Fla. The festival is spread throughout downtown in eight different venues, all within walking distance. Because of raucous behavior from previous years, there will be no official house parties, which means they won't be listed on the program. The Fest started in 2002 and has grown, grassroots- style, into one of the most anticipated events of the year to see veteran and up-and-coming punk rock bands. Some notable acts from previous years have been Against Me, Mastadon, Less Than Jake and Small Brown Bike.This year the list is huge; Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, Teenage Bottlerocket, Cobra Skulls, High on Fire, Hard Skin, Suicide Machines, Frank Turner, High on Fire, Kylesa, Shook Ones, Strike Anywhere, Torche, Bomb the Music Industry!, Strike Anywhere, High on Fire and The Flatliners to name a few. Also, this year is the 25th anniversary of No Idea Records. To celebrate it got Twelve Hour Turn and Planes Mistaken for Stars to reunite, as well as the entire cast of No Idea alumni.

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